Graduate Project

In my graduate project, I am activating an experience to provoke a sense of peace surrounding the topic of ‘life cycle’. My design consists of two ‘moon gate’ thresholds on either end of the laneway which was inspired by the works of Olafur Eliasson and Carlo Scarpa. These portals perch atop of stairs to emphasis the mystery of life hiding in between. Across the laneway runs a canopy of vines, creating an arcade. In the middle presents a white magnolia tree representing long life and endurance. The Moon Garden potted along the arcade is planted with night-blooming flowers, adding to the temporal layers of night and day shift, as well as the seasonal blooms within this project. The touch of nature woven throughout is inspired by AJ Hawkins’ art series. The seating around the magnolia allows people to sit and ponder the carved phrase ‘Memento Mori’ meaning remember you will die – in hopes that it will leave a lasting impression surrounding this topic, long after visitors have walked through.

Research Question in my story of practice:

How can I inspire positive thought over the notions of life and death in the Auckland’s weathered Fort Lane, through a traversal experience which reflect existential philosophies and result from artistic techniques, such as abstract painting and model making, to spark change in individuals who stumble through?

Paper Reflection

I was pleasantly surprised and satisfied with the structure of this paper. The brief is so broad and there is plenty of room for interpretation and creative freedom. It was interesting to see how my peers interpreted this brief which helped me push my boundaries of possibilities. From the beginning I knew I wanted to create a design based of a complex concept which is relevant and beneficial to society. I am passionate about connecting with people, and I believe I have a responsibility to create a positive influence over people who I am designing spaces for.

At the initial stages of the project, I was very fascinated with the atmospheric and immersive elements of the cinematic realm, as I have seen my peers also peak an interest in. Projection, lighting, shadow, reflection and screens have the potential to create some very unique, enticing and immersive spaces. My cinematic device, the camera obscura piqued my interest to look at the city through different lenses and made me question what further contextual or poetic elements were hiding or possible within the site context of Fort Lane and the wider Auckland CBD. The structural history of the site was also interesting as I wanted to do more research on time. There has always been a temporal element within the direction of this project for me.

In the first few weeks of this paper I was interested in designing a series of installations which reflect the past, present and speculate future of Fort Lane and how people used the space. This concepted proved quite challenging to execute in reality, and my interested drifted to more existentialist philosophies which has always fascinated me. I then considered how I could create an atmospheric installation using cinematic elements which reflected existentialist philosophies. This would have been a fascinating means to execute my concept however it felt too artificial to reflect the nature of life and death and how that could be applied to people. Emily helped drive the direction of my project to the natural world which I had a lot of fun playing with. The array of artists and philosophies I looked at also helped build my knowledge as a designer and highlight the concepts, mediums and techniques I am fascinated in and applying in my practice. This may carry through to my masters, though I am still deciding whether I wish to go through without. However I think I have a good conceptual base to do it as there are still many other realms and methods to explore within this context of my graduate project.

As a spatial designer, I have an influence on people’s emotions through the way they experience the spaces I create. I hope to exceed my limits to create a positive change in society while I am still alive. Consciousness is a blessing and a curse, but when used wisely, we can unlock futures beaming with possibility.